EEOC Launches Online Inquiry and Appointment System for the Public in Five Offices

New System Allows Online Interaction With the Agency

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today that five of its offices have launched a new Online Inquiry and Appointment System. The system will allow individuals to electron­ically submit initial
inquiries and requests for intake interviews with the agency. Initial inquiries and intake interviews are typically the first steps for individuals seeking to file a charge of discrimination
with EEOC.

The EEOC receives more than 585,000 calls a year to its toll-free number and more than 30,000 emails at info@eeoc.gov. Many of these communications are from individuals wishing to file a charge of discrimination. In fact, the EEOC's offices
receive about 200,000 formal inquiries per year through the mail, in person, and by phone, requiring followup by EEOC investigative staff. These formal inquiries result in over 90,000 formal charges of discrimination being filed with the agency each
year. This makes the charge-filing process the agency's most common interaction with the public. This new online system is part of the EEOC's ACT Digital initiative to improve
service to the public, streamline the administrative process, and reduce the use of paper submissions and files.

The EEOC launched the new Online Inquiry and Appointment System on March 13 in the following five offices: Charlotte, Chicago,
New Orleans, Phoenix and Seattle. People living or working within 100
miles of these EEOC offices will be able to use the online system to submit an inquiry and schedule an intake interview. Individuals can access the Online Inquiry and Appointment System at https://publicportal.eeoc.gov/Portal/ or from EEOC's website at https://www.eeoc.gov/employees/online_inquiry.cfm. The agency plans to
evaluate the public's experience with the new system in these five offices prior to a nationwide rollout later this fiscal year.

"This new system will make the EEOC much more accessible to the public -- it's a big step forward in the agency's move to online services," said EEOC Acting Chair Victoria A. Lipnic. "We encourage people to provide candid feedback as they use the
system, so we can make sure it works well for the public and for the agency."

The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov . Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by
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